But as it says on the bottom of every prospectus, past performance is no guarantee of future results. And in these days of cockeyed cooked books, past performance is barely a guarantee of past results! So you need to decide not only what to buy, but you have to be darn sure you know when to sell it when future results of an investment don't match your expectations.

There is a way the investor, NOT the fund manager, can protect his money. He must set a limit price. If the fund drops below that price Mr. Investor must call the fund manager and have his money transferred into a money market account. Cash is king while the market is sinking. If Mr. Investor is not willing to take responsibility for his own money his full name will be Mr. Poor Investor.